


I´ve been waiting for you

by Sarah_von_Krolock



Category: Tanz der Vampire - Steinman/Kunze
Genre: Blood, Death, F/M, Romance, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-27 08:16:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,707
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12577552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sarah_von_Krolock/pseuds/Sarah_von_Krolock





	I´ve been waiting for you

Wolfes. Weeks ago they turned into a real problem, a true plague. The harsh and cold winter of this year robbed these animals of every kind of nourishment. Like this, they had no other choice then to steal themselves, pushed by hunger, into small villages, assault the stock of the farmers and even some humans who were simply dumb enough to go into their territory. Wolves may fear humans, avoid them, but their hunger was stronger than their instincts and the fear of their weapons of fire. They are beautiful creatures and it makes his heart bleeding that he needs to step in to stop these predators from further hunting in places they don´t belong at. He was forced to do so. If he wouldn´t do so, the farmers and wood cutters would and they did more harm and damage with their cruel traps than nessecary. They would even damage the fur of these poor animals so much that it can´t be used anymore. No. He rather takes care of this ´problem` on his own.  
Pensively his fingertips stroke over the steely, cold barrel of his rifle. It had been so long that he was holding a rifle in his hands, as he lost his joy for hunting... only reluctantly he takes one of those weapons again into his hands to put those wonderful creatures into their place.   
With a sigh, he loads the rifle and walks over to the stable. His stallion is waiting already saddled up for him, ready for the hunt. He leads the stallion out of the stable, swings himself into the saddle with one swift move and leaves the castle grounds towards the edge of the forest that encloses his grounds. There his son already awaits him and greets him with a simple nod.   
"Is this really nessecary, father?"  
"Herbert, there is no other way. I hate to do it, but as the Lord of these lands it is my duty to get things in line. I can´t let it happen that neither the wolves in the villages nor the farmers in the woods are poaching. Or do you want that these stupid humans through the whole forest spread traps in which the animals are suffocating for hours? With an iron noose around their neck painfully choke or in a trap with iron teeth slowly bleeding to death?"  
"No," answers the blonde lad after a few seconds of silence.  
"It only needs one moment of carelessness and your horse or even you can become victims of such a trap. I want to avoid it."  
"Compared to an animal I am very sure that I can free myself perfectly fine out of such."  
"Really? You want to go and try? Then get off your horse and go forward!" The silence of his son is the answer he thought to get.   
Slowly they ride into the forest that is as black as the deepest night, only the pale moonlight spends his light from time to time, fighting through the roof of needles. The more they have to pay attention, searching more accurate with their eyes.  
"Do you smell it too, father?"  
"Yes. Blood has been spilled."  
"Seems to be a lot of it and not long ago. Who might have had bad luck this time?"  
"Probably travellers, outsiders. The locals aren´t that dumb to enter the forest at night."  
"If it might be too late?"  
The dark haired one nods lowly."Death already took care of them."  
The younger one sighs slowly."Father?"  
"Yes, my son?"  
"Do you really need to... shoot the wolves?"  
"Yes, I have to if needed. I can´t build a fence around the forest and it´s not of any help to tell these animals that are not allowed to attack humans who enter their territory or to go into the villages for the chickens..." The blond one sighs again. His son always had a soft soul and sometimes he thinks he was too generous with him through all these years, spoiling him too much. "If you would like to, you can..."  
Suddenly they could hear the growling and more sounds of a fight within a pack of wolves very close by. "They found their prey."  
"Or they still feed on one."  
"We should take a look." They spur on their horses, dashing through the darkness of the forest only lead by their senses. Lashing through the snow, over cut trees and roots and the undergrowth until they suddenly tore at the bridles of their steeds and they came to a halt in front of the remains of a destroyed carriage that looms out of the snow.  
A horse with torn neck and sliced open lies dead in the snow, blood dying it red.The carriage crashed into pieces, luggage spilled through the whole area... The animals don´t let themselves be disturbed by the newcomers to feed on the corpses of the horse and two men. Slowly father and son get off their horses, one shot rang through the cold night. Alarmed the wolves lift their heads, but still draw back with baring teeth. They´ve learned that those noisy weapons of humans are dangerous. And most of all... there is no creature in the woods who doesn't know the mighty Vampire Lord?  
"Gruesome... hardly to recognise..." Herbert pulled his face in disgust, taking out a handkerchief and covering his nose and mouth. It takes longer in this coldness for a human to smell the scent of death, but not for their kind with enhanced senses.   
"That hasn't been simple travelleres. These here had a lot of money."  
"What are we doing now? We can´t let them rot here."  
"Sht!... be quiet..." He could feel something. A tiny spark of life. A tiny heartbeat. "Don´t you see it?... The corpses are male. But the luggage..." Why hasn't he seen it right away?!  
"The luggage also hints to a woman," Herbert finishes his father's sentence and now too recognises the clothes that are spilled. "But where is she? She isn´t here! May it be possible that she survived?"  
"No." The count got onto his knees in front of a destroyed chest, taking out a tiny shirt of lace. "Not with a child..." Immediately he rises, putting the rifle into his sons' hands. "You ride into the closest village and take some helping hands from there to collect the corpses and the luggage. Everything will be brought into the castle and will rest there until we found out who they are. I'll go and look for the mother and child."  
The blond one nods, gets into the saddle again and rushing to do what his father told him to.   
The snow is too dishevelled to make out any footprints. Once more the count has to rely on his senses alone. He could feel that there was still life out there,a tiny heartbeat, but he couldn't tell the direction. All this spilled blood is fogging his senses. But a noise came to his help, a little whimper, carried by the wind, telling him where to search. With determined steps he follows that sound, lead by the whimper, wading through the snow until a bloody trace in the innocent white tells him where to go and a few steps later he sees her. A woman crooked in the snow. A single gaze is enough to know that she is no longer alive, died of her severe wounds probably, bleeding constantly, becoming weaker, exhausted, deadly in the cold snow. But she hugs something close to her chest, a small bundle. Carefully he loosens the embrace and takes the whimpering bundle, pulling back the blanket... A baby. A tiny, delicate creature looks at him with a green eyes, whining out of hunger and cold, that little bit of red hair dishevelled... By god, it is so tiny and delicate... he hardly dares holding it any longer in his arms out of fear it might break like a porcelain doll... It was too long ago, centuries, since he was holding such a tiny creature. It seems to be unharmed at the first look and little golden bracelet tells him the little creature is called Sarah.   
"Sht, little Sarah... such a beautiful creature doesn´t need to fear," he whispers and truly, she stops whining, simply looks at him with the greenest eyes he ever saw. Then she reached out to him with her little hand. "Pretty, little Sarah. Way too small to comprehend what has happened." Too small to see that those who loved her most are dead, that she is an orphan now, thanks through hungry wolves. Her little fingers are grabbing his index finger, seems to be happy. "You don´t fear me, right? You don´t fear me at all?" Obviously not. It is strange but somehow... to give away this tiny creature into the care of others makes him incredibly sad. He can´t explain it, but somehow he feels a connection to her. But he has to. He has no opportunities to raise a child. Yes, he did so with his son but... that was centuries ago, he is his kind, not only by blood but circumstances. It wouldn't be a life for a human child, in a drafty, cold castle, surrounded by darkness, by death, spiderwebs and dust.  
If she has relatives in where ever her parents came from, then they are by law the ones to care for her. They have a right to know that their youngest family members survived this tragedy. He has to look through the luggage for papers, revealing those travellers indendity, making out the closest relatives and contacting them. A few weeks only. A few weeks only he'll make sure that she is in good care, as long as it needs to make out her next guardian. He´ll need to take her to Bucharest. Giving her into the care of one of the noble families, who owe him a debt, for the time she stays. But not tonight. Tonight was exhausting for all. It would have been too much for the little one. Tomorrow. Tomorrow he´ll give her into a good care.


End file.
